Supported pot magnet for magnetic resonance system

Abstract

A supported pot magnet has a magnet coil and a coil former, with the coil former being made of a non-metallic material having a thermal contraction coefficient the same as that of the magnet coil. The supported pot magnet also has a cooling circulator composed of two identical separate components with a semi-cylindrical shape, each having multiple cooling tubes, a refrigerant inlet tube, a refrigerant outlet tube, and multiple clamps. The cooling tubes have a semicircular shape and mate with the slots, and are provided thereon with heat conducting members that are vertically disposed at an inner side of the cooling tubes. The refrigerant inlet tube and outlet tube are vertically mounted at two ends of the cooling tubes, in communication with the cooling tubes. The clamps are disposed on the refrigerant inlet tube and outlet tube.

We claim as our invention: 
     
       1. A supported pot magnet, comprising:
 a superconducting magnet coil; 
 a coil former comprised of non-metallic material; 
 a cooling circulator that circulates a coolant in said cooling circulator that places said superconducting coil in a superconducting state by thermal communication between said coolant and said superconducting coil; 
 said coil former comprising a plurality of slots, and said magnet coil being wound in said plurality of slots, and said cooling circulator being mounted on said coil former, with said coil former being in simultaneous mechanical contact with said superconducting magnet coil and said cooling circulator; 
 said coil former and said superconducting magnet coil having a difference between respective thermal contraction coefficients of said non-metallic material and said superconducting magnet coil that maintains said thermal communication by said difference being less than or equal to 10% of the thermal contraction coefficient of the superconducting magnet coil; and 
 said cooling circulator comprising two separate, engaged components on said coil former, each of the separate components comprising a plurality of cooling tubes, a refrigerant inlet tube, a refrigerant outlet tube, and a plurality of clamps, said plurality of cooling tubes having a semicircular shape and mated with said slots, said refrigerant inlet tube and said refrigerant outlet tube being respectively mounted at two ends of said plurality of cooling tubes and in communication with said plurality of cooling tubes, and said plurality of clamps being disposed on said refrigerant inlet tube and said refrigerant outlet tube, so as to engage said two separate components. 
 
     
     
       2. The supported pot magnet as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said two separate components are identical. 
     
     
       3. The supported pot magnet as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said cooling circulator comprises a plurality of metallic thermally conducting members, having a width matching an inner diameter of the slots, uniformly distributed at an inner side of said cooling tubes and proceeding vertically to said cooling tubes, said heat conducting members being in direct contact with the superconducting magnet coil. 
     
     
       4. The supported pot magnet as claimed in  claim 3 , wherein said heat conducting members have a sheet shape or a cylindrical shape. 
     
     
       5. The supported pot magnet as claimed in  claim 1 , wherein said non-metallic material is poly-phenylene sulphide. 
     
     
       6. The supported pot magnet as claimed in  claim 1  comprising a resin that encapsulates said coil former with said superconducting magnet coil and said cooling circulator mounted thereon. 
     
     
       7. The supported pot magnet as claimed in  claim 6  wherein said resin is blended with glass beads.